Race to the Summit
by GreatKateZonkeyMachine
Summary: Eck. I don't like this story at all, or the title. I had to write most of it at 1:00 a.m. in order to finish before the deadline. Oh, well. This is my story for Kahlan Aisling's April challenge.


A/N: **As I was skimming down the list of drabble prompts, I noticed that they were chillingly similar to the way I have "The Trouble with Genius" outlined. So I decided to make this a sneak peek of TTWG, which is why it's an MBS/Artemis Fowl crossover. I hope I haven't bent the rules too much. I wasn't sure if we had to actually **_**use**_** the word in the prompt in each drabble.**

**I ended up writing nearly all of these after midnight, so I'm not thinking they're fabulous. But hey, the important thing is—I finished!**

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><p>Disclaimer: <strong>I don't own Artemis Fowl or the Mysterious Benedict Society. They belong to Trenton Lee Stewart and Eoin Colfer, respectively. I also don't own the term Sith (but I got it from early folklore, NOT Star Wars!).<strong>

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><p><em><span>Diversion<span>_

The Sith chuckled to herself. These puny humans thought they could stop her from getting what she wanted... Well, all it would take was a simple diversion—and then she would be victorious.

_Privilege_

Despite the graveness of the situation, Reynie was practically bouncing with enthusiasm. Finally, _finally,_ he was one step ahead of Fowl and Butler. He would capture the creature, and he would be the one to earn the privilege of, well, saving the day.

_Surprise_

But of course it was not going to be that simple. He should've known the odds wouldn't turn out in his favor.

"Hello," said Artemis Fowl. "Fancy meeting you here."

_Climb_

Over the rocky slope, through the brilliant swirling white snow, the humans ascended in their great smoky metal vehicles up the mountain. The climb was long and dangerous, but more dangerous was the terror the Sith was about to unleash.

_Empty_

"I think I've found it!" Artemis cried. "Butler, be ready!"

Reynie, fuming that Artemis had found it and not him, kicked the snow on the ground in frustration.

But the boy genius was wrong—for the second time in as many weeks, he was wrong. When the manservant thrust open the metal door of the wrecked ski lift, the Sith was not inside.

_Caught_

The trap was sprung. The Sith's diversion had worked—the humans hadn't caught her, she had caught them. As the assorted company of humans stood outside their snowmobiles, the second the door was opened, an enormous vibration emanated from within the ski lift. Every human was knocked off his or her feet; the mountainside shook so violently that the rocks broke apart. The snowmobiles and their drivers vanished under pouring snow.

_Foot_

"S.Q., you blithering _idiot!_" Mr. Curtain yelled hoarsely, picking himself up and trying not to fall asleep from fury and embarrassment—embarrassment, even though there was no one around to see but the young former Executive.

"I am so sorry, sir," said S.Q. He hastened to help his boss.

"Get off—I can do this myself," said Mr. Curtain gruffly. "Snakes and dogs... It's bad enough you trip _yourself_ with those enormous feet, but now you have to trip _me _as well!"

_Hero_

As they ascended the snowy mountain, S.Q. couldn't help but hope, just a little bit, that something would go wrong. After the mishap a few hours earlier, in addition to accidentally tripping Mr. Curtain, he was secretly hoping for a chance to redeem himself in Mr. Curtain's eyes—perhaps if something bad happened, and he was able to counteract it, he could be a hero.

_Broken_

"Aagh!" Milligan groaned.

"Are you okay?" Reynie asked anxiously, struggling to free himself from the fallen snow.

"No..." the bodyguard grunted. "Can't walk... Broken feet..."

His heart sank. If Milligan's foot was broken, how could he ever hope to get out of this situation _alive_—let alone beat Fowl to the Sith?

_Hurt_

"Are you badly hurt?" came the boy's voice from far below. The reply from his older companion was "Not fatal..." in clipped tones.

The Sith smiled. This was a crippling blow to her pursuers. The boy's genius might have been enough to combat Artemis Fowl, but he was no match for the most powerful fairy on Earth.

_Shave_

"Foot injuries aside, it was a close shave," said Artemis. Inside, his emotions were a confusing mess. Did he feel sorry about the injuries of a man who had so persistently tried to get in the way of Artemis and Butler? The avalanche was Artemis's fault, after all. But despite his humiliation, he now clearly had the upper hand.

_Guard_

"What are you doing?" said Mr. Curtain sharply, looking at S.Q. as he began to climb down the Salamander's ladder.

"Coming with you, sir, of course," S.Q. replied nonplussedly.

"No," said Mr. Curtain. "Why don't you just, um... just stay here and guard the Salamander, okay?"

S.Q. would have protested, but Mr. Curtain was already leaving him behind. Turning away to hide his hurt, S.Q. began his task of "guarding" the Salamander.

_Speak_

"Speak to me, Milligan!" said Reynie desperately. He glanced behind him; Artemis and Butler were already salvaging a snowmobile. He didn't have much time, and Milligan wasn't responding—what should he do?

_Safe_

Inside the small square room, the sound of the blizzard outside could scarcely be heard. The Whisperer was totally secure here, completely safe.

Surely.

_Crash_

With a world-shattering _crash!_, the glass panels in the walls of the room shattered. Snow immediately began to blow in, and the Sith appeared, framed against the white blizzard. Here at last was the final weapon she needed to complete her plans.

_Spots_

"FREEZE!" Mr. Curtain roared, hurtling into the square room to face the Sith. Calmly, the fairy changed shapes: fur sprouted, fangs grew, spots darkened all over his body. The sight of a snow leopard facing the narcoleptic man where a seemingly ordinary human being had just been was too much for Mr. Curtain—he slumped to the floor, fast asleep.

_Wildcard_

Reynie didn't see what choice he had. He was playing a wildcard, and he knew it. But he had to beat Fowl to the summit of the mountain. He _had_ to!

_Loss_

It felt like a terrible loss to be continuing on without Milligan, but Reynie forced himself to focus on the issue at hand: climbing the mountainside.

_Grow_

After nonchalantly shoving the sleeping Mr. Curtain aside, the Sith began to change shape again. She wanted something grand, powerful, terrifying.

She began to grow.

_Mirror_

Mr. Curtain blinked groggily. He was lying on the ground, facing away from the Sith. But he could feel the room groaning; whatever she was becoming, it was big. Mr. Curtain squinted at a shard of glass that was acting like a mirror—he looked at her morphing reflection, and was met with a terrible sight.

_Spread_

The Sith's body spread into one three times the size of any human. Her feet disappeared, to be replaced by a long snake's tail as thick as a tree trunk. Wings poked out of her back. Her hair shrank back down into her skull, and in its place grew a horde of snakes.

_Rock_

The Salamander trembled as boulders tumbled over the snow. S.Q. looked anxiously at the shape of the building. Was Mr. Curtain in trouble?

_Adopt_

Thoughts flew through his head of the man who had taken him in, become the closest thing to a father he had ever known, almost adopted him. That man had ordered him to stay here... But that man needed him.

_Move_

S.Q. made up his mind. He had to move fast; he jumped over the side of the great armored vehicle and ran towards the building.

_Secrets_

The Sith marveled at Curtain's stupidity. The Whisperer was _his_ ingenious invention, and never had he realized the full magnitude of its secret power.

_Generations_

For generations, fairies had been oppressed by the Mud People. Forced to go into hiding underground, forced to live in the shadows. But no longer. Everything was about to change.

_Spite_

Muldoon was infuriatingly persistent. But he was naïve as well; it would be easy to take him out of the running, and Artemis, full of spite for the only boy in the world who could rival his own intelligence at twelve years old, knew exactly how to do so.

_Answers_  
><em><span>Liar<span>_

Suddenly, the snow crumbled underneath Reynie's feet. He fell for a few terrifying seconds, and then landed on a ledge below, half-buried.

He'd been a fool to trust them. He wanted to cry; he wanted to scream with fury. Artemis Fowl was a two-faced liar.

_Majesty_

Madge circled overhead, scanning the white mass below for anything unusual with her keen, smart eyes. As soon as she spotted it, she swooped back down to signal Kate.

_Child_

Just as the Gorgon-Sith was about to take her seat in the Whisperer, she noticed something in the corner of her eye. It was a child, the size of a speck on the mountain below.

_Run_

The child was running extremely fast, practically flying over the winding path that led up to the building.

_Edges_

Taking a reckless shortcut, the child vaulted over the rocky wall on the side of the path and began to sidle quickly along the edges of the building.

_Fear_

For the first time, the Sith felt a tiny flicker of fear. Who _was_ this child? The Sith had not planned on her.

_Sneeze_

The sound of a sneeze from behind her snapped her attention away from the child. Mr. Curtain was coming to.

_Fire_

The burning cold of the snow on his skin was worse than fire. Reynie would not survive much longer out here.

_Baby_

A single blow to the head, and Mr. Curtain was out like a light. This was too easy. How like babies the humans were! Naïve, easily succumbing to simple tricks, unable to fend for themselves... Pathetic.

_Mud_

The Sith was tired of living in the secret places of the Mud People's filthy world, and she knew all her fairy brethren felt the same. Mud People didn't deserve dominance. Fairies did.

_Tears_

Looking up at how hopelessly far away the summit of the mountain was, Reynie could not stop the tears of despair that were trickling down his face and freezing. What hope was there? The Sith had already won.

_Apology_

Mr. Curtain knew that all was lost. He was trapped, immobile, on the floor, mere feet away from the Whisperer—and the Sith was going to prevail. _I'm sorry, S.Q._, he thought sadly. _I love you._

_Nap_

"Still napping, human?" taunted the Sith. Her snake-hair vibrated mirthfully. She sat down in the Whisperer, a gleam of triumph in her eyes.

_Older_

Curtain thought he was superior—they all did. But the Sith was older, far older, than any human had ever lived to be. No Mud Person could compete with such wisdom as hers.

_Late_

Kate burst into the shattered building just as the Sith lowered the red helmet onto her head. Her hand flew to her bucket, but she was too late.

_Responsibility_

_This is my fault_, thought S.Q. _I'm sorry, Mr. Curtain. _If only he'd been more decisive... Maybe if he had gone after Mr. Curtain in the first place, he could have prevented this. He was responsible for the decimation of humankind.

_Second best_

Reynie's shoulders slumped. There was no way he could beat Fowl now. He'd been defeated. Fowl was right; he really was second-best.

_Eyes_

Kate's eyes met with the creatures for an instant—and in that instant, she felt the Sith's power, intelligence, and cool purpose burning into her—before it started.

_Pulse_

Suddenly, the Whisperer sent out a huge, pulsing shockwave that knocked Kate off her feet and shook the world to its foundations. With the fairy seated in it, the Whisperer continued pulsing and vibrating, and Kate could almost see the ripples in the air.

_Protect_

"Mr. Curtain, sir!" cried S.Q., rushing to shield his master.

"S.Q.!" Mr. Curtain yelled. "I told you to guard the Salamander!"

In that moment, S.Q. realized the real reason he'd been left behind. Mr. Curtain didn't think him worthless—he was trying to protect him. But it was too late for that now. Neither of them could protect one another from the terrible power of the Whisperer combined with that of the Sith.

_Gray_

Without warning, Reynie fell to his knees. His head was swimming; his vision was going grey. This was a feeling he had felt once before. He was being brainswept.

_Strings_

At last, at long last, the Sith had succeeded. The humans thought they could outsmart her, but she'd been pulling the strings right from the beginning.

The humans' time in this world was over. Now it was fairy's turn.

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><p>AN: **I think that was the most challenging challenge Kahlan has ever come up with. It was really hard to make one story out of all those prompts; it seems choppy to me, but I had so little time when I finally broke my procrastination that I couldn't afford to nitpick.**


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